In honor of Halloween,and all things that go bump in the night, a poem.

  And check out the lovely work at http://www.goblinfruit.net/ It’s a feast for the eyes and imagination.

Novemberling

When skeletal leaves chatter on the walks

and cattails along the river droop,

            I’ve seen them clinging to the riverbank,

moss green fingers knobby as willow wood

digging into damp. Imagined the spindly arm behind,

cold and sinewy, trying to hoist the shriveled body to shore.

Among November’s browns and grays,

it’s one more perishing mound along the walk,

and it will be looking for a hiding place,

a holing-up-in, waiting place,

dry and warm, the hollows of trees

feathered with leaves or better yet,

the attic eaves, if it can slide in through the vents,

the bedroom floor where dust bunnies burrow,

beneath the bed where no one looks,

behind the basement stairs.

Before the freeze, before the white hair of frost

rises in alarm, across our lawns, its wide-webbed feet

must find their way. What birth is this,

what stars, what night, that calls them

from the mired shores to the crevices of light?

Steven King, yes, Mr. Horror himself , editor of The Best American Short Stories 2007, and a damn fine writer, has this to say in the Sunday New York Times about the state of the short story .

Instead, let us consider what the bottom shelf does to writers who still care, sometimes passionately, about the short story. What happens when he or she realizes that his or her audience is shrinking almost daily? Well, if the writer is worth his or her salt, he or she continues on nevertheless, because it’s what God or genetics (possibly they are the same) has decreed, or out of sheer stubbornness, or maybe because it’s such a kick to spin tales. Possibly a combination. And all that’s good.

What’s not so good is that writers write for whatever audience is left. In too many cases, that audience happens to consist of other writers and would-be writers who are reading the various literary magazines (and The New Yorker, of course, the holy grail of the young fiction writer) not to be entertained but to get an idea of what sells there. And this kind of reading isn’t real reading, the kind where you just can’t wait to find out what happens next (think “Youth,” by Joseph Conrad, or “Big Blonde,” by Dorothy Parker). It’s more like copping-a-feel reading. There’s something yucky about it.

 Read the full article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/30/books/review/King2-t.html?_r=1&em&ex=1191297600&en=31912528dacbd8bc&ei=5087%0A&oref=slogin

Thanks to Debra Murphy and the Idyllst blog for alerting me to this one!

Drop two hundred gifted educators into Richland, WA.— did I say gifted educators–okay, educators of the gifted, but they’re often the same thing–and you can’t help, but have more ideas than tumbleweeds in the Columbia Basin. (sorry low metaphor day)

Jann Leppein, one of the best presenters in our galaxy, shared this site http://ology.amnh.org/index.html from the American Museum of Natural History. Ologists are people who study specific fields, experts in a discipline. So click on a discipline, then click on “what’s the big idea” to get an overview of the field. Come back and explore the various links. Send in questions and talk with an Ologist! Doesn’t get an cooler than that!

 What is the WA State Arts Commission?

“For more than 40 years, the work of this agency has been the conservation and development of the State’s artistic resources. To do so, we have invested in strong, vibrant connections with artists, arts organizations and communities – integrating the arts into the state priorities.”

Here’s the link for those of you asking about my role as a  teaching artist for the Washington State Arts Commission. The roster lists artists available for school presentations and tells a little about their areas of expertise.

http://www.arts.wa.gov/education/roster/mcquerry.shtml

“We encourage you to contact the artists directly to learn more about their skills, teaching approach, and availability for workshops and residencies.”

You can reach me through maureen.mcquerry@gmail.com

“But that’s not the way of it with the tales that really mattered, or the ones that stay in mind. Folk seem to have just landed in them, usually-their paths were laid that way..But I expect they had lots of chances, like us, of turning back only they didn’t…We hear about those that just went on–I wonder what sort of tale we’ve fallen into?”

I wonder,” said Frodo. “But I don’t know. And that’s the way of a real tale. Take any one that you’re fond of. You may know , or guess, what kind of tale it is, happy ending or sad ending, but the people in it don’t know. And you don’t want them to.”

J.R.R. Tolkein, The Two Towers

If you attended ACSI and are looking for poetry handouts click here. For talented reader handouts click here.

If you look at the really fine print in the “also noted “ list under children’s and YA fantasy–Wolfproof is mentioned. You don’t need a magnifyling glass-quite. It’s nice to be part of the tome!

This is a great place to find good reads,books, journals and poetry! Enjoy!

Several folks asked for websites with lists of books for kids…Remember, some of these books will not be appropriate for your purposes.. Please review them first!

American Library Association   (young adult link)

http://www.ala.org/yalsa

Children’s Book Council

http://www.cbcbooks.org

Children’s Literature Web Guide

http://www.uclagary.ca/~dkbrown

Hoagie’s Gifted Information Page

Http://www.hoagiesgifted.com

Outstanding Science Trade Books for Children

http://www.nsta.org/pubs/sc/ostblist.asp

International Reading Association

http://www.reading.org

Reviews of middle school books:

www.middlebooks.com

Thanks to the wonderful folks attending ACSI for making my time there so enjoyable! A number of peole asked me about speculative fiction (fantasy, sci-fi, magical realism) written from a Christian world view. The wonderful site, www.wherethemapends.com has a comprehensive list of authors and titles. So, why invent the wheel twice. Go to http://www.wherethemapends.com/Booklist/booklist_intro.htm and choose between a graphics link with book covers included or the text only list. You’ll find good reading for you and your students!

Handouts from Challenging Talented Readers and Poetry will be posted in the next few days.

Is that an oxymoron? Does the term “christian fiction” leave you cold, make your toes curl in your shoes? Do you love fantasy, sci-fi, magical realism? Check out these cool sites:

http://www.marcherlordpress.com/

http://www.wherethemapends.com/main.htm

http://www.reliefjournal.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=73&Itemid=88 Coach’s Midnight Diner

There’s much more–it just takes a little sleuthing. Will talk about the field more when I return. Off to Portland to talk to teachers–yahoo! Should I take an umbrella?